Sure, we've seen some glimpses of good play with him, but do you really feel that he can become more than a third-tier bench player? At least with us, mind you.

Don't tell me that with more playing time he'll get better, because it doesn't look like that is going to help.

I've read through some of the old Blazers' blogs around, and many expected him to be "A second-round steal with first-round talent." It didn't happen. Or at least hasn't.

Sure, he's athletic, he's big...but, I am not sure that he is cut out to be more than what he is. I like him, I hope he does well, but he's been in two systems, including a Farm System where he supposedly flourished. I just don't think that Josh is really ever going to be that good.

Before you throw me under the bus, for the record I really like McRoberts. I just would like to expect more from him, but it's unlikely.

Just something of a little discussion, this is not a place where it is okay to bash the coach or talk tanking.

Anthem

03-05-2009, 11:31 AM

I think he could be a very good third big... an Antonio Davis type. I always thought that would be Foster's ideal role, as well, but we've usually had poor enough bigs that he was always forced to start.

BPump33

03-05-2009, 11:37 AM

I think we (myself included) have back-up QB syndrome with McBob. On a NFL team that struggles the fans favorite player is always the back-up QB. There is that "unknown" factor that maybe this guy is THE guy that we've been missing.

I want McBob to play strictly based on his energy/athleticism. I think in a game like last night where the momentum has clearly swung in the Blazers favor that bringing in some energy off the bench would be nice. On a side note, I think Diener getting hurt killed us in the second half when our offense became absolutely stagnant, but I'm a little biased on that subject. Anyway, maybe McBob comes in and picks up 3 quick fouls, or gets dunked on, or has a costly turnover and hurts us more than helps, but the thing is we don't know b/c he doesn't get that chance.

The only thing I keep telling myself is that JOB sees him in practice on an everyday basis so he knows more than we do about McBob and what he can bring to the table.

pacergod2

03-05-2009, 01:02 PM

There is also the reasoning that he is a free agent this year and we need to be able to resign him for less money and therefore he isn't getting those 8 minute spurts of playing time he probably deserves. Just a thought. Conspiracy theorist possibly.

OakMoses

03-05-2009, 01:10 PM

do you really feel that he can become more than a third-tier bench player?

Yes. I do. I'm sure there's a reason that McRoberts isn't playing. It's probably even a good reason. I think it's probably inconsistency. After watching for two seasons, I think O'Brien values consistency almost to a fault.

With the exception of Rush and Hibbert, you pretty much know what you're going to get from every guy that plays on a nightly basis.

When you put McRoberts in the game, you know you're going to get energy and effort, but he's obviously not shown O'Brien what else he's going to bring to the table consistently.

I think Josh needs to pick a couple skills and become excellent at them. I'd suggest a 12-15 foot jumper and learning to be the big in a pick and roll/pop situation. If you combine those two things with his effort on the glass and on defense, he'll make a niche for himself pretty quickly.

Infinite MAN_force

03-05-2009, 01:31 PM

You know, there is a reason the guy was once the top high school recruit in the country. Athleticism + size + skillset. He has the tools. There are lots of reasons to believe he could be more than a third tier bench player.

but...

He came out of college too early, and is very raw. And as someone stated, JOB values consistency almost to a fault, and his reluctance to play rookies this season has been well documented at times. With Rush and Hibbert firmly in the rotation, nobody should be surprised that Mcbob isn't getting any burn.

Without taking reputation into account, which has been a big problem with people's perception of this guy... I like what I have seen on the court this year. I saw him play really good defense shutting down Zach Randolph in the OT of the clippers game... I have seen him block shots at a high level. His jump shot has potential, and his ball handling and passing are at a very high level for a bigman. Dude has hops, can get up and dunk. There is a lot to like here.

He is also passive offensively, and has no real post game to speak of.

He seemed to have an attitude problem at one time, which may explain the earlier blows to his development. However, it appears being a second round pick sent to the D-leaugue has humbled him.. and he seems genuinly thankful for the second chance he has recieved here. If he has a good attitude and work ethic, I don't see any reason why Josh can't turn into a real nice player.

Josh should get his shot next year when Rasho and Baston say bye bye. Than we can see for ourselves. At the current time Im OK with him not playing, starting next year he needs to get on the court.

vnzla81

03-05-2009, 01:39 PM

Mc Roberts should be able to be a good player, I been saying for months that he reminds me of Chris Andersen(the Birdman) rebounds block shots and good D. I think that the problem with JOB is that he does not want to play to many rookies at the same time, I know this is his second year but he only played two games last year. I don't wanna see more Maceo or Rasho let Mc Roberts play

Peck

03-05-2009, 01:45 PM

What we have seen and what we have gotten are two totally differant things. Something does not add up.

The very few moments he has played he has

a. passed the ball very well, in fact I would say exceptionally well, for a player his size.

b. Had moments of above average defense for a player who has as little on court experiance as he has.

c. Rebounded very well

d. Shot the ball at a decent pace.

His last time on the floor for any extended min. he was a foul machine, but to the best of my memory that wasn't a problem prior to that game.

What I'm trying to say is that what we have had glimpses of on the court by no means merits the playing time he has been given. So that leads me to believe that there is something else.

We are not at practice every day, we don't deal with him every day so there may be something we don't know.

I guess O'Brien deserves the benefit of the doubt here on this.

It may just be another Diagu case of having the tools but just not being able to use them.

Although, again, from what I saw early in the season I just don't get it.

Jonathan

03-05-2009, 02:04 PM

Mc Roberts will only have a career in the NBA if he develops a niche. Josh is an energy guy. He should be playing the last two minutes of the first half every game the rest of the season. Larry Bird does have a plan. I remember when he was coach; he would insert Mark Pope in games just to inbound the basketball.

Skaut_Ech

03-05-2009, 02:05 PM

USF, I like your analogy to the backup QB syndrome. I think I kinda fell into that trap with McBob, at first. Then I woke up.

I think he's is/going to be a third tier guy who plugs a whole for a team like a Brian Scalabrine or Matt Bonner. I like his energy, but I don't see him building a career on that unless he turns that energy into play like Kurt Rambis or Chris Anderson. I like McBob, but I'm not looking for big things from him.

Naptown_Seth

03-05-2009, 02:25 PM

Sure, we've seen some glimpses of good play with him, but do you really feel that he can become more than a third-tier bench player? At least with us, mind you.And how many glimpses of bad play have you seen, and to what extent, and what type of bad play was it (experience, youth, over-aggressive or dumb, selfish, physically inept).

This is the issue fans of his have right now. He plays, he's great, he has a dramatic impact on the momentum of the game, and he's incredibly disruptive to the opponents front line.

His main issues that I see involve his aggressiveness. He goes after EVERYthing like it's do or die and that leads to quick fouls. He can sometimes be nearly as disruptive to his own team's flow as the other team's. Certainly he also ends up out of position on plays, but I do chalk that up to playing time, and he's far from alone on that issue (ahem, Roy Hibbert).

But for the most part he is a positive sum player and I'm dumbfounded by his lack of PT. I really don't know what JOB saw during any of these games that he didn't like, other than perhaps wanting a big that could trail and drain the 3.

Perhaps that's just it, maybe JOB doesn't want a team that features some sort of true banger at the PF spot. I love Jeff, but he's a hustler rebounder far more than a banger. He will bang with guys, but he's often taking the punishment more than dealing it out, especially on offense. I mean Jeff is asked to sit out around 15 feet on a regular basis in this system. So maybe the type of player Josh is (ie, not Mr. Mid Range) is the issue. Heck, just look at Rasho's game too.

But I certainly don't punt on him for that. He's aggressive because he nearly failed out in Portland. Now he's hungry and I think more focused. I would easily play him in place of Jeff if need be and I'd put that as his upside. A solid 8th man frontline energy guy.

I mean here we are in the recruiting thread talking up the idea of a low block banger/pick setter like Blair and yet the team's currently most physical PF can't get off the bench. Why draft what you've already got? I just don't get it.*

I been saying for months that he reminds me of Chris Andersen(the Birdman) rebounds block shots and good D.
Definitely, almost identical in how they play the game.

*I would still view Blair as a smart pick in the 8-12 range

Naptown_Seth

03-05-2009, 02:28 PM

Duke, keep this in mind too. Many of us older fans saw Greg Drieling trotted out as a "legit" big man for the Pacers and McRoberts destroys his game, so maybe we aren't as spoiled as someone that grew up with Dale and Tony instead.

Unclebuck

03-05-2009, 02:30 PM

My best guess is that McRoberts is a little like Jeff Foster his rookie season and I don't think anyone now looks back and says that Jeff should have played much at all in his rookie season. (I seriously doubt Josh will ever be as good as Jeff - but they have similar games)

BRushWithDeath

03-05-2009, 02:52 PM

My best guess is that McRoberts is a little like Jeff Foster his rookie season and I don't think anyone now looks back and says that Jeff should have played much at all in his rookie season. (I seriously doubt Josh will ever be as good as Jeff - but they have similar games)

The difference is in Foster's rookie year the Pacers were a really good team with plenty of much better bigs. That isn't the case this season.

clownskull

03-05-2009, 03:22 PM

You know, there is a reason the guy was once the top high school recruit in the country. Athleticism + size + skillset. He has the tools. There are lots of reasons to believe he could be more than a third tier bench player.

but...

He came out of college too early, and is very raw. And as someone stated, JOB values consistency almost to a fault, and his reluctance to play rookies this season has been well documented at times. With Rush and Hibbert firmly in the rotation, nobody should be surprised that Mcbob isn't getting any burn.

Without taking reputation into account, which has been a big problem with people's perception of this guy... I like what I have seen on the court this year. I saw him play really good defense shutting down Zach Randolph in the OT of the clippers game... I have seen him block shots at a high level. His jump shot has potential, and his ball handling and passing are at a very high level for a bigman. Dude has hops, can get up and dunk. There is a lot to like here.

He is also passive offensively, and has no real post game to speak of.

He seemed to have an attitude problem at one time, which may explain the earlier blows to his development. However, it appears being a second round pick sent to the D-leaugue has humbled him.. and he seems genuinly thankful for the second chance he has recieved here. If he has a good attitude and work ethic, I don't see any reason why Josh can't turn into a real nice player.

Josh should get his shot next year when Rasho and Baston say bye bye. Than we can see for ourselves. At the current time Im OK with him not playing, starting next year he needs to get on the court.

yeh, i think you summed up my thoughts up too. came out too early before he really developed his game but, he's still very young and in the offseason he can work on things like a post game among other things. i really think he has the talent and potential to be a much bigger impact player for this team than he currently is. will he? who knows... but i think a slice of humble pie did him some good and he will just focus on improving. i hope he sticks around for us.

Since86

03-05-2009, 03:26 PM

My best guess is that McRoberts is a little like Jeff Foster his rookie season and I don't think anyone now looks back and says that Jeff should have played much at all in his rookie season. (I seriously doubt Josh will ever be as good as Jeff - but they have similar games)

Maybe not as good of a rebounder, but I would hope that Josh could be better at just about everything else.

Unclebuck

03-05-2009, 03:32 PM

Maybe not as good of a rebounder, but I would hope that Josh could be better at just about everything else.

He'll never be the defender that Jeff is, but sure, he'll be a better scorer

Since86

03-05-2009, 03:50 PM

Quite honestly, I've never been as impressed with his defense as you have. But I still don't know how you can say never. Josh is the better athlete, and has the lateral quickness to go along with it.

Just a better scorer? He's already far superior in passing and ball handling. I just don't get all the love for Foster around here. Sure, he's a great rebounder but he's very limited in everything else. He's a perfect 3rd PF. Teams that need him as a starter or big time backup minutes type of player are going to struggle.

pacergod2

03-05-2009, 04:17 PM

I would love for our team to hit the weights hard this off-season.... especially McRoberts. If he has the work ethic, McRoberts will be a good NBA player. If he doesn't he will **** his career away a la Shawne Williams.

Jose Slaughter

03-05-2009, 04:18 PM

I remember much earlier in the season O'Brien mentioned that the reason he wasn't playing Hibbert & Rush at the same time was an effort to isolate mistakes during a game. With two rookies playing together it was far harder to see where the offensive or defensive breakdown came.

To some extend I think McRoberts might have fallen victim to this, being, in affect, a 3rd rookie. As was mentioned above, Bird & O'Brien see this guy everyday. Not only on the practice court but how he handles himself too. They brought in Billy Keller to help him with his shot & I think that more than anything might say what their plans are for him.

When you consider that O'Brien is also focused on winning and Murphy has really stepped up his game this year over last I think its clear why McRoberts hasn't gotten as much playing time as some of us would like.

That will change the last couple weeks of the season, once we are out of the playoff picture I hope that McRoberts will get his chance.

Peck

03-05-2009, 04:19 PM

He'll never be the defender that Jeff is, but sure, he'll be a better scorer

Not that I agree or disagree with you but what makes you think this? Is it something you see in his stance or his movement? This might go a long way in explaining some of his lack of playing time.

duke dynamite

03-05-2009, 04:20 PM

Duke, keep this in mind too. Many of us older fans saw Greg Drieling trotted out as a "legit" big man for the Pacers and McRoberts destroys his game, so maybe we aren't as spoiled as someone that grew up with Dale and Tony instead.
I understand. I basically created this as a discussion on how McRoberts could possibly develop into a better player. I would like to see him play, but it isn't going to happen this season and I am fine with that.

Smoothdave1

03-05-2009, 04:27 PM

A couple of things about McRoberts:

-- A few years ago coming out of HS, the guy was projected to be a lottery pick. I think he has the talent and potential to be a rotational guy. Will he be a Larry Bird or Antonio Davis? Probably not, but he could be a solid 6-8 ppg and 4-5rpg player, I think.

-- Josh has gotten scarce playing time throughout the season. I think for him, Roy, Brandon and whomever we pick up in the draft this year, getting a lot of exposure and playing time on the summer league team will definitely be beneficial and a year of NBA basketball under thier belts will certainly help for the former.

-- Josh just turned 22 last week, so he's still a very young player and is the youngest player on the team as Roy and Brandon are older. I still think there's time for him to turn the corner and develop into a solid rotational guy.

BTW, I guess Josh doesn't like the McBob nickname per his blog on Pacers.com and prefers J-Mac or Mac: http://my.nba.com/forum.jspa?forumID=5700028071

2minutes twowa

03-05-2009, 04:33 PM

There's no reason why he shouldn't be able to reach the same level as Murph. Like others have said already, he's tall, athletic and has natural ability. I think it will come down to his work ethic. If he practices hard and developes a consistent mid-range jumper, he could be a pretty good player.

Thesterovic

03-05-2009, 04:45 PM

He should at least get garbage minutes in the end of the first three quarters.

Drewtone

03-05-2009, 06:16 PM

Duke, keep this in mind too. Many of us older fans saw Greg Drieling trotted out as a "legit" big man for the Pacers and McRoberts destroys his game, so maybe we aren't as spoiled as someone that grew up with Dale and Tony instead.

Naptown, I hope you're not discounting that sweet '3' that Drieling nailed at the end of the Starks Headbutt playoff game in '93! ;)

BlueNGold

03-05-2009, 11:30 PM

Josh is not playing for numerous reasons...only some which are apparent.

First, he is behind Foster and Murphy in the rotation. That's a lot of money and experience to justify cultivating an unproven rookie while you're trying to win games. If you play Josh and lose, you look like a fool and don't win the support of the vets. You also degrade the trade value of expensive players by sitting them. It just doesn't work in the lockerroom or the board room. Josh is simply not seasoned enough at this time to overcome all of it.

Also, Josh is first and foremost a defensive player. Yes, he can pass the ball and get to the rim...but defense is where he has more short term potential. He is a guy who you can put on a Zach Randolph or David West, etc. and slow them down. Otherwise, those guys light you up every time. JOb doesn't really consider defense to be the #1 priority, so none of that matters. JOb favors shooters. Murphy will always get the nod as long as he's on JOb's roster. Just the way it is...

El Pacero

03-06-2009, 11:48 AM

BTW, I guess Josh doesn't like the McBob nickname per his blog on Pacers.com and prefers J-Mac or Mac: http://my.nba.com/forum.jspa?forumID=5700028071

Ha, I was the one who asked Josh if he liked McBob (PacersCourtside nick) and if not start a campaign for a new nickname . . . because I hate that name and was pretty sure he did, too. So no more McB0b PD!

I agree with the conspiracy theory that one of the many reasons he isn't playing, is that so other teams won't want to involve him in a trade, because he is good. He will be a great replacement for Foster eventually, and we might have to trade Foster soon.

WetBob

03-06-2009, 02:55 PM

Josh is not playing for numerous reasons...only some which are apparent.

First, he is behind Foster and Murphy in the rotation. That's a lot of money and experience to justify cultivating an unproven rookie while you're trying to win games. If you play Josh and lose, you look like a fool and don't win the support of the vets. You also degrade the trade value of expensive players by sitting them. It just doesn't work in the lockerroom or the board room. Josh is simply not seasoned enough at this time to overcome all of it.

Also, Josh is first and foremost a defensive player. Yes, he can pass the ball and get to the rim...but defense is where he has more short term potential. He is a guy who you can put on a Zach Randolph or David West, etc. and slow them down. Otherwise, those guys light you up every time. JOb doesn't really consider defense to be the #1 priority, so none of that matters. JOb favors shooters. Murphy will always get the nod as long as he's on JOb's roster. Just the way it is...

That's fine. He is behind Foster and Murphy, but how can anyone justify Maceo getting minutes over him?

BlueNGold

03-06-2009, 10:13 PM

That's fine. He is behind Foster and Murphy, but how can anyone justify Maceo getting minutes over him?

Excellent question. I wish I had an answer. I don't think Maceo has been piling up the minutes though. I can only think it might be that veteran edge.

peasouptexan7

03-06-2009, 10:27 PM

I like McRoberts. He seems like he gets into the game on the bench and is always cheering for his teammates. The little he has played, he has showed some promise. I hope we re-sign him and that with Rasho and Baston gone he can get some time. He's a long term project, but I can see him being a fairly productive energy type guy off the bench.

imawhat

03-06-2009, 11:49 PM

Raise of hands: Has anyone seen a Pacers player as inexplicably benched like McRoberts?

I've never seen a situation where a Pacers player has positively impacted every game he's been in (but one), on a team as mediocre as this, only to be put dead last in the rotation. It's one thing to be a young player on a deep team. It's another to be an above average post defender and great athlete on a team lacking post defense and athleticism.

We really must be missing something behind the scenes.

speakout4

03-07-2009, 12:11 AM

There is also the reasoning that he is a free agent this year and we need to be able to resign him for less money and therefore he isn't getting those 8 minute spurts of playing time he probably deserves. Just a thought. Conspiracy theorist possibly.
I'm in your camp. Hide him and then sign him to a multiyear contract and then give him minutes. The guy just turned 22, hardly an age that we can say he has maxed out his talent for a big guy. I am hopeful and haven't seen anything to suggest he can't play.

BlueNGold

03-07-2009, 12:21 AM

Raise of hands: Has anyone seen a Pacers player as inexplicably benched like McRoberts?

I've never seen a situation where a Pacers player has positively impacted every game he's been in (but one), on a team as mediocre as this, only to be put dead last in the rotation. It's one thing to be a young player on a deep team. It's another to be an above average post defender and great athlete on a team lacking post defense and athleticism.

We really must be missing something behind the scenes.

There may be something else going on, but if not, what should happen is written on the wall now.

With Done-leavy and Granger out, this season is obviously over. It will not matter that much if we pick up a few more wins over the next 2 months. As a result, the young guys better get some experience now...or next season is not going to be any better...and JOb will be Done too.

Granger is not getting any better. I'm a big proponent who expected him to be this good and stated so...and now I say he has pretty much peaked. There is an argument for just sitting Granger out at this point.

Done-leavy is finished. That knee will end his career...or at least next year he will hardly be that effective. I would be shocked if he suited up before 2010.

We lose Quis and maybe other players as we get squeezed by the salary cap. We cannot get rid of Tins and all we got coming in is a rookie.

JOb will be hard-pressed to keep his job beyond next year. No offense to him, but that's just reality. The talent has to come from somewhere to pick up more wins and it will need to be from the young guys....namely Rush, Hibbert and McRoberts. Nobody else on the team is going to get significantly better. As a result, next season will be JOb's last if he doesn't make it a priority right now to get all the young guys as much experience as possible, and that includes McRoberts.

It's on the wall. Just not sure JOb is reading it...

Hicks

03-07-2009, 12:25 AM

BlueNGold is hitting the cynic sauce..... ;)

BlueNGold

03-07-2009, 12:41 AM

BlueNGold is hitting the cynic sauce..... ;)

Man, looking back, that was a lot of negativity. Maybe I need to double up on the Prozac...

Naptown_Seth

03-07-2009, 02:12 AM

Naptown, I hope you're not discounting that sweet '3' that Drieling nailed at the end of the Starks Headbutt playoff game in '93! ;)
What's that I hear, a request for a 4 DVD Pacers Best Of #2 set featuring GD's finest games? You'll pay double if we can slip in some Greg Kite footage?

I'll see what I can dig up.

Naptown_Seth

03-07-2009, 02:25 AM

Excellent question. I wish I had an answer. I don't think Maceo has been piling up the minutes though. I can only think it might be that veteran edge.
And my problem with Mace is that THIS TIME around he's just lost a step and some vert. He's struggling to make plays he could handle a couple of years ago. So it's not even a case of him being so solid, he kind of flounders now where before I understood why he was getting burn.

Just a better scorer? He's already far superior in passing and ball handling. I just don't get all the love for Foster around here.
I'm a huge Foster fan and even I give Josh a big advantage in handles and passing.

Josh is this - he's a guy that shows tons of a various skills and lots of athletic ability. Even if he never becomes solid, right now it's WAY too early to know that and it makes no sense that a team struggling for talent wouldn't at least investigate the situation a bit more.

Frankly I thought he was the most solid of the 3 youths this year and I'm also on Rush's jock, so it's not favoritism.

I would like to see him play, but it isn't going to happen this season and I am fine with that.
The reason I'm not is the same one that had me upset about Roy and Rush sitting so much. They aren't actually worse options. It's not some trade-off to lose more if they play. If anything I think Rush playing more has helped the defense a ton and given them more shots to win despite his own interest in scoring. The same with starting off with Roy as the post offense threat.

I think McBob (better get used to the idea) also helps the team win games. Make him your momentum breaker every time, it only takes 6-8 well placed minutes to get a nice bang from him.

Look at the Portland game or the Denver game. Early on we couldn't have 2 rooks out there because of all the mistakes and losing. Yet here they are looking not much better IMO (Rush still isn't scoring and always played D, Roy still fouls and always was okay in the post) but playing modest minutes in games the team wins or almost wins vs good competition.

Keeping them out to help the team was dumb right from the start. Forget development time, use McRoberts like Rush and Roy - to help win games now.

imawhat

03-07-2009, 03:52 PM

Keeping them out to help the team was dumb right from the start. Forget development time, use McRoberts like Rush and Roy - to help win games now.

One of the understatements of the year, as it's becoming more and more obvious by the game.

aceace

03-07-2009, 04:46 PM

I think McRoberts, as someone said, could easily be as good as Foster. McRoberts I think will be better offensively but may lack a little rebounding wise. He needs consistent minutes, he's looked good at times and I really hope we re-sign him. We have so many expirings he should be able to get minutes next year even if it's 10-15.

Midcoasted

03-07-2009, 07:55 PM

McRoberts should be playing simple and plain. I don't see practice but I have seen when he went into the game and he brought more to the table than any of our big man. No playing him is just ludicrous. I would seriously start to question JOBs eye for talent if I was Bird and I would impose stricter player roatations. Our guys are running out of energy and McRoberts brings more of that than anyone. He is also better at gaurding the post than anyone we have other than Hibbert. I just think it ridiculous myself.

I'm not just a homer, this guy really has potential. He should be second string PF on this team. I laugh at people who think he won't be as good as Foster. As much as I love Foster and respect his D, he gets dominated way too much. McRoberts seems like he could be more consistent than Jeff ever has been.

Kemo

03-07-2009, 09:24 PM

ya foreal Mid ...

I agree 100% ..

Because I really think McRoberts is a hell of alot better than what JOB or TPTB are leading on .. which makes me think they are trying to re-sign him cheap, with all the talk about how little wiggle room we have in the finances dept right now .... THEN let him ease into more minutes as they will inevitably open up with all the expirings ..

I see J-Mac becoming alot better than Foster .. and that is a compliment to both men ..
Josh is just so raw , that I believe they are working with him on harnessing and refining that raw talent/energy .. Otherwise , they wouldnt have brought in Keller to work with him ... Speaking of.. I am glad they brought Keller in, because he has been helping Roy and others as well, and you can really tell in their shots..

.
.

.
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Dr. Awesome

03-07-2009, 09:42 PM

I really like McRoberts, which is weird because I'm a Tar Heel fan. I honestly think McRoberts could develope into a starting caliber player, some players just need time to prove themselves.

I'm not saying he would be that with playing time, but I think he could.

Naptown_Seth

03-07-2009, 10:33 PM

And on the flipside of this, something I think a lot of us would agree on, is if he got some run of 20 mpg for 5 games and just was a flop, a real problem guy who was turning it over, getting killed on rebounding, a main defensive weakness that other team's instantly targeted, then I'd be the first one to say "okay, guess he needs to sit a bit, but thanks for taking a look at him at least".

We aren't in that "he's great because he's unknown" mode. We are in the "we've seen him play and he looked pretty solid" mode. Until we see different why should we think different, but it doesn't mean we'd deny it if the evidence took a turn for the worse on him.

imawhat

03-08-2009, 04:09 AM

Didn't play tonight, but he made an impressive between the legs slam (with authority) which wowed the crowd during warmups.

Meanwhile, Baston and Murphy were getting dunked on.

WetBob

03-08-2009, 12:53 PM

Didn't play tonight, but he made an impressive between the legs slam (with authority) which wowed the crowd during warmups.

Meanwhile, Baston and Murphy were getting dunked on.

Every game that he doesn't play it just looks more and more like my theory on trying to keep his value down is right.